Lover's Feud
by demonprincess7
Summary: Buffy has a vision, Angelus is back and he's headed for Sunnydale. Will her love for Angel once again compromise her ability to kill Angelus? Who will he kill before she has the chance? Set in season 4 around Doomed, but lacking in Riley drama. Will get a bit dark and grim in later chapters and I can't promise a happy ending as I just haven't decided where this will end at all.
1. A Monster Rises

Buffy walked into Giles's apartment after school. She tossed her bag down on the table in the entry. Spike was in the kitchen pouring Weetabix into his blood.

"Spike, what are you doing here?" It was still awkward for them to be in the same room together let alone talk to each other. After Willow's "will be done" spell, she couldn't decide if she wanted to punch Spike when she saw him or kiss him. Punch him, she definitely wanted to punch him. "Never mind, where's Giles?"

"Good evening to you too slayer," He said walking into the living room and throwing himself down on the couch.

"I don't have time for this. Where is he?"

"Don't know, haven't seen him all day."

"If you're lying to me…"

"Oh right, because I care whether or not you find your precious watcher."

"Shut up, Spike."

Just then, Giles walked in the door carrying (would you believe it?) lots of books. "Buffy, I'm glad you're here. I have a few theories about out strange commando friends."

"Actually Giles, I need to tell you something."

"What is it Buffy?" He set his books on the table looking concerned.

"Um, in private maybe?"

"Yes, of course," Giles said and led the way into the kitchen. Spike looked over the back of the couch at them, but didn't get up.

"What's wrong."

"Well, I'm not sure how to… I mean I… I did something, bad. I think. I'm not sure I don't really remember. I mean I kind of remember, but not exactly," Buffy rambled.

"Buffy, slow down. What is it you think you might have done?"

"Well, after Thanksgiving, you know I went to LA." Buffy fidgeted. "While I was there me and Angel we, uh… you know."

"You mean to say," Giles cleaned his glasses. "You and Angel, you…"

"Yeah. I mean I think so." Buffy sighed. "I don't really remember, but it's like…. I _know_."

Spike laughed from his seat at the bar. "So sex with Peaches isn't so memorable then, eh?"

"Spike! What are you doing?" Buffy asked.

"Well I couldn't help but overhear your conversation, vampire hearing and all. I thought I'd join you."

"You thought wrong. Go away Spike." Spike stayed where he was, but he didn't say anything else. Buffy turned back to Giles. "I wouldn't have said anything if I wasn't certain. I had this dream… One of those slayer-vision-dream-things."

"So," Giles put is glasses back on. "We should be concerned that Angelus may be free. You went to Los Angeles weeks ago, why didn't you say anything sooner?"

"I told you I can't really remember, but if Angelus _is_ back, he's coming here, Giles. We have to be ready for him."

"Yes, right." Giles's face went dark as he left the kitchen and went to call the other Scoobies. Buffy walked around the bar and leaned against it looking worried. She couldn't help but think of all the damage Angelus had done last time. He killed Ms. Calendar, nearly killed Willow, and almost sucked the world into hell. Buffy thought the best case scenario would be if Angelus came after her and left the rest of the world alone, but that still meant her friends were in big trouble. And all of this was just because she and Angel had been left alone for a minimal amount of time.

After a few hours Willow, Xander, and Anya had all shown up and Buffy updated them. Willow blushed.

Xander panicked and said, "How? I mean I know how I just mean, how? You and Angel… Angelus is coming here?"

"Most likely," was Buffy's nervous sounding reply.

"Who's Angelus?" Anya asked.

After explaining Angel's evil soulless version to Anya, Giles suggested preparation plans.

"Buffy, you should call Cordelia in Los Angeles; tell her what's going on. No one should be left alone." Buffy nodded and went to the phone to make the call.

"I'll stay with Xander!" Anya offered.

"Me and Buffy can sleep over at her mom's; make sure Joyce is safe too." Willow said.

"We'll also need to increase patrols and in bigger groups. As soon as Angelus sets foot in Sunnydale we'll need to know about it," Giles declared.

"Ooh I know about a spell. We could use it to set off a sort of alarm if any big bads come into town," Willow said.

"That's very good Willow, yes. We should definitely look into that."

Buffy rejoined the group. "I talked to Cordelia. Turns out, _she_ was just about to call us. Angel is awol," she paused and the group felt tense. "Willow, you mentioned a spell."

"Yeah, but it's only an alarm. It won't keep him out."

"How fast can you put it together?"

"If the magic shop has all the ingredients I think it can be done in… maybe two hours."

"What about that vampire-keep-out spell?"

"I think I have all the ingredients for that one," Giles said. "I could do it myself."

"Good. Okay. Sunset was about an hour ago so if he's only leaving LA now, we've got time," Buffy looked nervous as she spoke. "Anya go with Willow to the magic shop." They nodded and left. "Spike, Xander, we're going patrolling."

"You've got it slayer," Spike said as he jumped up from his bar-side seat.

"Giles, work on that keep-out spell. You'll just have to reinvite Spike when we get back."

* * *

Angelus watched the last ray of sunlight disappear from room as he hid safely in the shadows. He'd been waiting for just the right moment. He always loved to plan it all out. Each step had to be perfectly placed. He'd spent weeks sleeping in Angel's bed, drinking pig's blood, and listening to Cordelia prattle on about her latest audition for one TV commercial or another. He was tired of playing the soul boy and helping the hopeless.

The street outside had steadily quieted until only the occasional car broke what to human ears sounded like silence. Any vampire in town however could hear quite the commotion. Angelus was back. They all knew. Those who were lucky enough to have been turned by a member of the Aurelian clan could feel his presence and had alerted the others in their excitement. Luckily for them, Angelus wasn't trying to keep it a secret. He knew that as soon as Cordelia realized he was missing she would assume the worst. She had watched him carefully, scrutinizing his every move, looking for some sign of Angelus. Maybe he should have killed her before he left. Maybe he _wanted_ her to call Buffy. Maybe he wanted the little blonde to sweat a bit, to panic before he finally arrived back on the hellmouth.

He looked at the floor where a small woman lay dying, her chest covered in her own blood. He swept from the room, his skin warming as the human blood replaced the old butcher shop pig's blood that his body had become accustom to. Reaching his car he tossed his cigarette to the ground. He looked out toward the dark California sky line and climbed into the car. Even as he drove he kept his new favorite treasure clenched in his fist. In his hand was a small pink flower, common and easily recognized by most witches as Lethe's bramble.

* * *

Buffy and the others had seen exactly one vampire since reaching the cemetery. That vampire was Spike. Spike, who was oddly quiet. He hadn't made a single comment about Buffy, Xander, or Angelus no matter how certain the other two were that he must want to.

They walked the path through the cemetery for the third time and still no sign of any vampires. All of the dirt was packed down and the grass undisturbed. They left and headed out to the next cemetery. There was a fresh grave there, but no signs that the corpse had or would be reanimating.

Buffy sighed. She was anxious about Angelus coming into town, but she had been looking to take out her frustration on a few newborn vamps. The frustration caused by her lack of control of the situation was becoming a problem for the slayer. The lack of demon activity was starting to bore her. She needed something to take her mind off Angelus. She would welcome _anything _that distracted her from her thoughts. She didn't want to keep thinking about Angel and whether or not they'd be able to put his soul back before she could kill him. Buffy didn't want to keep wondering how much damage he would do before either of those things had a chance to occur. Who would he come after first? Buffy was certain that _someone _would die. It would be someone she loved. It wouldn't be the only death to happen before Angelus could be stopped, but it would not only be a game changer, it would be a life changer. Unless Angelus had changed his ways (which Buffy thought was _very _unlikely) and decided not to mess with her friends and family, death was hanging over each of their heads. She felt horribly guilty for putting them in this kind of danger. She just wished could remember how it happened. Maybe it wasn't her at all. Maybe something bad had happened, something nonsexy and majorly magically that made it not so much her fault. She would feel less guilty, but it wouldn't change the fact that her loved ones where in terrible and unpredictable danger. Buffy was so caught up in her worries that Angelus could have been walking right behind her and she wouldn't have even felt it.

Spike was busy contemplating what might happen when his sire catches him helping the slayer. Angelus wouldn't understand his chip issue. He'd insist that Spike had gone soft, that he had joined the slayer in fear of her or some nonsense. Spike was also concerned about whether or not Angelus would be on another end of the world mission. The whole destroying the world bit had been rather out of character. It must have been caused by Angelus being locked away in the cage that was Angel. It made him crazier than Dru. Spike didn't think he would try to destroy the world again, but he would certainly make destroying Buffy his priority. While Spike was all for the slayer dying, he wanted to be the one to do. If he had to see someone else kill the slayer, Angelus was the last demon he'd want it to be. As long as she wanted his help, Spike would stand by the slayer in this battle.

"Where are all the vamps?" Xander asked.

"Well," Spike paused to light a cigarette. "If they heard that Angelus is coming to town, they'll be busy competing to be his new lackeys. They like to think they're all gonna be pals with the poof."

"Really? They're all excited about being minions?" Xander asked incredulous.

"Oh, yeah. It's a big deal him being the head of the Aurelian clan all," Spike couldn't help but sound a bit proud.

"It doesn't matter _where_ they are," Buffy said. "What matters is they aren't _here_. We should head back to Giles; see if he has any news."

"I don't see why you're so down, Buff. No vamps means there's time to get a nap before Angelus shows up," Xander said.

"I'm the slayer, Xander. It's just what I do. I slay."

"There's an awful lot of cemeteries in Sunnydale, pet. We ought to keep going," Spike was concerned that the slayer was worrying too much about the oncoming danger to focus on the here and now.

"Sure, but I really don't think we'll find anything," Buffy said sounding agitated.

"Don't be so glum. I'm sure something nasty will turn up, always does."

"We can only hope," Xander said sarcastically and with a small laugh.

* * *

Willow and Anya made it back to Giles's shortly after he had finished the spell to revoke the vampire invitations. Willow had found the book containing the spell and they ran to the magic shop to get all the ingredients. Luckily, they'd found everything they needed and Willow could put the spell together without delay. Giles helped Willow set everything up and she began. The other three left her too it and wandered about Giles's apartment waiting for the others to return.

Giles was the most anxious of the lot. Angelus was the one danger that he wished his slayer never had to face. Sure she'd faced incredible danger and been put into the most horrible of circumstances, but Angelus topped the list without a doubt. It's never easy fighting with one's lover, but when the fight is to the death, it becomes nearly impossible. At least it would be for any human. To Angelus, it was fun, it was a game. He chose to do this because Buffy was the greatest testament to Angel's humanity. Angelus hated her for that. Angelus doesn't often hate his victims, and that makes the torture that comes before hand all the more heinous.

Giles went to the kitchen and poured himself a scotch. He was afraid for his slayer and afraid for her friends, but he felt nothing for himself. There was a part of him that wanted Angelus to come after him. All of that anger of Jenny Calendar's death had resurfaced. He thought he'd moved on, but how does one get over the death of one that was so dearly loved? He could a part of him that he hadn't felt in years rising up. It was the part of him that liked to pretend wasn't really him at all. It was a monster that goes by the name that few still insist upon calling him. It was Ripper and Ripper was ready for vengeance. But vengeance would have to wait, because Buffy had made it back safely and Spike would be waiting for an invitation.


	2. Setting the Game

WELCOME to SUNNYDALE. The big yellow and orange sign greeted Angelus as he drove into the town. He had a few hours before sunrise, but he expected that Buffy and her gang would be patrolling extra hard and he didn't want to be seen until he was ready. He'd need to find somewhere to hide for the night and ignore his love of luxury. Anything would have to do for the night. The factory was destroyed and Buffy would be expecting him to return to his mansion. He would have to pick a crypt in one of the cemeteries.

Angel turned off the road and parked his Plymouth in the woods where it couldn't be seen from the street. He walked silently through the trees watching for Buffy and her friends while simultaneously searching for a place to spend the night. Peering through the trees, he caught sight of the small blonde walking just a few paces behind two others. One of the two was quite obviously Xander, but the other surprised Angelus for a moment. He knew that Spike had helped Buffy to stop him before, but that could be forgiven. Angelus hadn't been in his right mind and Spike took drastic measures to stop his mentally damaged sire from doing something stupid. Now, here he was walking stake in hand with the slayer. Angelus involuntarily growled. The slayer had gone and corrupted his childe. Sure the boy was Drusilla's childe but the poor girl had no idea how to teach a childe how to be a vampire and it had been his duty as grandsire to take over for her. This was not what he'd had in mind for his boy.

Spike was a killer and damn good one. Angelus would never admit to the boy how he admired his style. His approach was always so unsubtle yet thought out and gracefully executed. Angelus was more the type to hide in the shadows and snatch someone up while they're alone. If he decides to play with his victims at all, it's a much slower and not nearly as pretty show. Angelus loved to watch Spike kill. He'd wait until William was alone and he'd have a nice chat with the boy about that and his new association with Buffy.

His family was broken apart by that damned soul of his. Darla was dead and Drusilla was off on her own somewhere. The childe should never be left alone. She can't take care of herself. Angelus hoped for the girl's sake that she had found someone to take care of her. He'd have to go find her once he'd taken care of the slayer. He didn't think it would take long, but he wanted to have some fun playing with her first.

* * *

Willow was still asleep next to her when Buffy woke up. It was a Friday, but even after the long night of magic and worry, Willow would be going to class. She could smell breakfast cooking downstairs. Joyce must have decided that having her daughter home was occasion enough to cook a big meal, even if she didn't yet know the reason for Buffy and Willow's sudden appearance the night before. Both girls had looked so exhausted that Joyce had insisted that they both head up to bed before going upstairs herself.

Buffy changed and went downstairs. She found her mother in the kitchen frying bacon and sat down at the kitchen island. "Morning," She said to her mom, her voice sounding rough after the long night.

Joyce smiled at her. "Good morning. I wasn't sure what you girls would be in the mood for so I made pancakes and bacon."

"Bacon sounds great."

Joyce fixed her a plate and watched her eat for a minute before asking, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Buffy shrugged and nibbled on her bacon. She sighed. "Actually, something bad happened, something _really _bad."

"I thought so. You seem really upset and you don't normally visit in the middle of the night, not that you visit at all, but that's not the point. What's wrong, honey?"

"Uh… It's Angel." Joyce looked a bit confused. "By Angel, I mean… Angelus. He's back."

Joyce's eyes widened. "Honey are you alright?" She asked as she walked around the counter to hug her daughter.

Buffy wanted to smile and cry at the same time. This is why she needed her mom at times like this. While everyone else worries about Angelus, Buffy could always count on her mom to worry about her first. "Mom, I'm _fine_. A bit wigged out, but I can get through this. I did it before."

Willow came down the stairs and found them in the kitchen. "I smell bacon."

Joyce smiled. "I have plenty."

Willow sat next to Buffy and Joyce fixed her a plate of bacon and pancakes. "So, Buffy, are you comin' to school today, because I'd understand if you didn't but we do have a test in Psych."

"I think I gonna stay here, spend some time with my mom."

"Um… Actually Buffy, I have to get down to the gallery. Shortly after breakfast in fact," Joyce said.

"Oh, well that's okay. I can go check in with Giles, see if he has any ideas what to do about our situation." Buffy said. "We'll be back tonight. The dorms are pretty much public domain, even if Angelus can't get into our room. I don't want to chance it."

Joyce nodded. Willow cleaned up her dishes. "Well, I've gotta get going. I don't want to be late."

"Bye," Buffy said looking a bit down.

"Bye, Willow," Joyce said. Willow left and after cleaning up the dishes, Joyce left too.

Buffy sighed and headed off to Giles's, taking extra care to make sure the door was locked behind her. Just in case.

* * *

The house was dark. The curtains were closes to keep out the sun. Giles hissed as he bumped his hip into the side of the table for the fourth time since Spike moved in. He turned on the desk lamp and rubbed his sore side. Spike was asleep on the couch. Thankfully the vampire didn't snore and he didn't seem to mind if Giles turned on a few lights while he slept. Not that Giles cared how well Spike slept, he just thought since Spike hadn't been the worst house guest he'd ever had and was at least respectful of Giles's space and didn't go rummaging through his things, he ought to maintain the peace between them.

He sat at his desk and flipped through an old familiar book for what felt like the millionth time in the last 12 hours or so. The book's preface claimed it contained "a complete history of the most feared and horrible vampires of the 19th century" but it held little information on the monster that was currently terrorizing his slayer. Angelus hadn't even turned up yet and already they were in a panic. He closed the book and turned to some of the old watcher's diaries. They too held little information on Angelus, a least nothing that they didn't already know.

Giles sighed and took off his glasses. He set them on top of the book and rubbed his forehead. He didn't know what to do. He hadn't been able to fall asleep until after sunrise and even then it fit and full of nightmares. He dreamt of Jenny.

He was in the Sunnydale High library. Jenny stood in the center of the room, smiling at him. She said his name softly and raised a hand as if to reach for him when a pale white hand wrapped around her throat. Angelus stood behind her smiling. Giles tried to run at him but he couldn't move and Angelus snapped her neck. Angelus's voice echoed through his head as he said, "What you going to do about it, Rupert? I'm just getting started."

The front door swung open and Buffy walked in, pulling Giles away from his thoughts. He pushed his glasses back on. "Buffy."

"What are we going to do, Giles?"

"Uh… I-um-"

"I could hardly sleep last night. I kept having these nightmares and what about my friends and my mom? What happens when he comes after them? I can't protect them all at once. I don't even know that I could protect one of them at once."

"Buffy, calm down. I know that this is all very difficult-"

"Difficult? This is _way _past difficult."

"But, we have to keep a level head. We cannot allow Angelus to frighten us into hiding and panicking."

Buffy sighed. "You're right. We have to focus."

"Willow's spell hasn't yet alerted us that he has come to Sunnydale, so we can assume that he is not yet here."

"What if the spell didn't work or- or he made it here before she cast it? He could be here right now and we wouldn't even know."

"Yes, alright, but still we need to plan. I assume you already know that the chances of bringing Angel back are slimmer than the last time. He'll be prepared for that. I believe Willow still has the spell, but there's no guarantee that it will work. You have to be prepared to do what must be done."

"'What must be done', yeah. Right. The real problem isn't doing it. It's getting Angelus to fight me instead of hiding and playing games."

"Maybe the best way to do that is to play some games of our own."

* * *

Angelus had picked a large ornate crypt in one of the larger cemeteries. It was the cemetery that Buffy patrolled most often mainly due to its size and therefore likeliness to harbor more vampires, but that just meant he'd have a nice view of her next fight. The inside of the crypt was dusty and full of spiders. A few snakes had moved in and taken care of the rat population. Angelus found it disgusting. He hadn't lived in surrounds like this since… well he never had. Angel however used to live in worse places than this. Sewers, old moldy basements, and other such dark filthy places were where the freshly ensouled Angel had hidden himself away from the world. He would need to get some supplies once the sun went down, which felt as though it were drawing near.

While investigating his new temporary home, Angelus had found what appeared to be a trap door. He lifted the heavy covering and peered inside. There was an old, worn ladder hanging down into a dark chamber. Angelus jumped down discounting the ladder. The room was large and empty, but appeared as though it had been intended for a sarcophagus. There was a tunnel that definitely led to the sewers dead ahead. The chamber would be the perfect place to set up a bedroom. Even if Buffy walked right into the crypt, she wouldn't notice his presence unless she knew where to look. It was perfect and Angelus couldn't help but smile. Everything was certainly going his way.

* * *

The sun had set and Willow was just leaving a late lecture on historical Roman figures. She was walking with a classmate and having a heated discussion about the death of Julius Caesar.

"No way, his death was completely justified," Willow's classmate, Davidson, was saying.

"Not at all. Caesar may have been a dictator, but he wasn't a bad leader. Sure someone needed to do something about him, but I don't think killing was the way to go," Willow insisted.

"Killing is the only way to deal with dictators."

"If you say so, but I completely disagree. Anyway, we can talk about this tomorrow, my dorm is opposite yours."

"Okay, see ya, Willow."

The two parted ways and Willow headed to her dorm to grab a few things before heading to Buffy's.

Outside of the dorm, Angelus stood hidden in the shadows of the nearby trees. He watched Willow enter the room and turn on the light. When she left, he followed. He back far enough that she couldn't have seen him even if she had turned around. He followed her mainly by her scent. When she turned and walked onto Revello Drive, Angelus lost all doubts about where she was headed. The girls were obviously hiding out at the Summer's. That most likely meant that Xander was staying with someone as well in an attempt to make them all untouchable. They might not be alone to sleep, but Angelus couldn't get inside anyway. He could wait. They couldn't stay indoors forever. Once the weekend ended, they would all have work and school to go to. For now, Angelus had a crypt in serious need of redecorating and a wayward childe to deal with.


	3. Friendly Encounters

Buffy was back in her dorm Saturday morning, packing a few things she didn't have back at home. She was trying to hunt down a stray hair brush when there was a knock at the door. She walked over to the door and pulled it wide open expecting someone to have come around looking for Willow. People often came by to ask for her help with homework and projects.

"Riley!" Buffy was surprised. She had forgotten all about the incident at the clock tower. "What are you doing here?"

"I guess we have to talk," He said.

"I guess we do. Uh, come in." She left the door open and sat down on the edge of her bed.

Riley shut the door and sat down on Willow's bed, facing her. They both sit silently staring at the floor for a while.

"Somebody should speak before one of us graduates," Buffy said.

Riley stood up and started pacing slowly. "What are you?"

"Capricorn on the cusp of Aquarius. You?"

"Sorry. That came out a little blunter than I intended. - It's just... you are amazing! Your speed, your strength," Riley said amazed.

"Also passionate, artistic and inquisitive. Who are you?"

"You know who I am. The rest... what I do..." He shook his head. "I can't tell you."

"Well, then let me." She stood up. "You're part of some military monster squad that captures: demons, vampires, probably have some official sounding euphemisms for them, like unfriendlies or non sapiens."

He nodded looking a bit suspicious. "Hostile Sub Terrestrials."

"So you deliver these HST's to a bunch of lab coats, who perform experiments on them, which among other things turn some into harmless little bunnies. How am I doing so far?"

"A little too well," once again Riley looked amazed.

"Meanwhile by day you pretend to be Riley Finn, corn: fed Iowa boy. Ever been to Iowa, Riley? God, if that's even your name," Buffy said getting angry.

Riley stood up. "It is, born and raised. And hey! Bulletin: I'm not the only one who's been a little less than honest here."

She sat down. "I thought a professional demon chaser like yourself would have figured it out by now. I'm the Slayer."

He looked at here as if her words meant nothing to him.

"Slay-er? Chosen One. She who hangs out a lot in cemeteries? You're kidding," She said disbelieving. "Ask around. Look it up: Slayer comma the."

"And you fight demons. I mean, you waled on those guys."

"You did pretty well yourself."

"But I'm a walking bruise today. You see me with my clothes off I look like... I mean… I have bruises. I don't see a scratch on you."

"You're not looking hard enough."

"I'm looking pretty hard."

* * *

Giles sighed, rubbing his forehead. He'd had another sleepless night. When he did lose consciousness, he had nothing but nightmares. While he was awake, Ripper was rattling his metaphorical cage. If he didn't get some self-control, Ripper was going to resurface and likely get him killed. He'd thought about telling Buffy about his problem so she could watch him, make sure he didn't disappear, but he didn't want her to worry or to distrust his judgment.

He went into the kitchen and poured himself a brandy. He'd been drinking more and more lately. Spike had commented on it the night before. If Spike had felt the need to mention it, it had to be getting bad.

It seemed like Spike was having some trouble sleeping as well. Giles's couldn't imagine that Spike was afraid of Angelus, but he was certainly spending an awful lot more time being awake during the day. The good news was that Giles didn't need to sneak around in his own home anymore, the bad news was that he didn't get a break from the pesky vampire. In fact, Giles could hear the TV running. Spike must have woken up and decided to watch the news.

Giles took his glass and headed into the living room. He sat in chair next to the sofa and sipped on his drink.

"Brandy again, watcher boy?"

"It calms my nerves."

"Could use some of that nerve calming myself," Spike said.

The news caster on the TV spoke urgently, _"The body of a local woman was found lying on the ground outside of the old Sunnydale high school. The victim was tortured before finally being killed by what appears to be two round puncture marks on her neck."_

"I'll call Buffy," Giles jumped out of his chair and went to the phone.

On the screen, the victim was shown on a stretcher being transported to the hospital to confirm her death and contact her loved ones. Spike could see the marks on her wrists where she'd been tied tightly down. There were burns covering her skin, each expertly placed not to kill or to be severe enough to knock the poor woman unconscious. Angelus had done this to get the slayers attention. It was certainly working.

Giles called Buffy, who made an excuse about being late to meet up with Willow and nearly ran out the door. Willow bumped into the Buffy in the hall and together they headed to Giles's, with Willow looking a bit confused as to the hurry, but assuming it was demon related didn't ask until they were alone.

Giles went back to his chair in the living room to see if there were any other brutal killings last night. If it was Angelus, he would have left the body somewhere it would be found to make certain that Buffy would hear about it.

"I've never been fond of torture," Spike commented. "It's a whole lot of extra work just for a bit of blood. Plus it gets messy."

"Yes, that's why torture is bad. Not because it's cruel and malevolent, but because it will leave stains in the carpet," Giles said rolling his eyes.

"You're bloody right it will! Worse is when the bloody poof demands that I clean up after him. Ruined several of my favorite shirts that way, too," Spike complained.

Giles's eye brightened. Spike had unintentionally reminded him of something that a part of Giles sincerely wished he hadn't. Spike was Angelus's childe. They were family. It's the sire responsibility to look after their childer, regardless of how old or how skilled they are. Spike may be a master vampire, but through basic vampire instinct, Angelus would always be drawn to protect him. Ripper had exactly the leverage he needed to get to Angelus. It had been sleeping on his couch and eating all of his Weetabix for several weeks now. He could use Spike to get to Angelus, one way or another. Giles smirked. Spike didn't notice. If he had, he might have been able to put the puzzle pieces together and realized that should keep his mouth shut. Instead he prattled on about his "ponce of a sire".

"…and you know that bastard had the nerve to rape the girl in _my_ bed. Isn't that what his bed is for? I mean, that's where I _sleep_. And now it's all covered in blood and bits of torn flesh and he just shrugs and tells _me _to clean it up. Like I'm some sort of slave."

"And you just let him push you around?" Giles asked sounding genuinely curious.

"Hell no, I punched that bleedin' wanker right in his face. 'course then we fought and he used his sire claim to get me to back off. Bloody unfair that was. The bastard's not one for being fair though is he?" Spike looked fairly close to pouting.

The front door swung open and Buffy marched in followed by Willow. "I thought he was coming after me. Why is he killing people?"

"I believe he's just trying to get your attention. It's your duty as the slayer to protect these people," Giles said. "He's appealing to the rudimentary nature of the slayer in you."

"Plus he thinks it's fun," Spike said.

"Torturing people for fun, hasn't he ever heard of the movie theatre?" Willow said.

"This definitely wasn't the last. I have to do something before anyone else gets hurt," Buffy said looking distressed. "Why didn't Willow's spell work?"

"He must have already been in town when I cast it. It can't tell us who's already here; only if anyone bad comes into town."

"Exactly what do you plan to do?" Giles asked.

"I don't know, but something. If I don't then this whole thing is gonna get way out of hand way too fast. I just avoid him and wait for him to do something worse."

"Worse than torturing innocent people?" Willow asked.

"I don't mean to sound uncaring or anything, but the demons in town to awful things to innocent people every day. Angelus is just another demon. Worse would be if he hurt one of us."

"I understand, Buffy, but we can't only think about ourselves here. There's a lot of people in this town-"

"And they all need my protecting, I know. But all of those people will have to fend for themselves until I figure out how to stop him. A full on fight never seems to get anywhere between us," Buffy said before walking out of the door. She left to go find somewhere quiet she could think and plan without anyone questioning her. She didn't need them to understand, but she would need them to stand with her when she made a decision.

"Do you think she's alright?" Willow asked Giles.

"I don't know. I'm sure she'll figure something out."

* * *

Buffy was walking back to her dorm when she bumped into Riley, literally. "Oof, sorry, I wasn't looking where I was- Oh! Riley, hi. I didn't see you. Obviously."

"No, it's okay. Actually I was just looking for you."

"You were? Why?"

"I asked some guys at the initiative about you being the slay- ow!" Buffy elbowed him.

"About me being a frycook, you mean." She said giving him a meaningful look. "Wait you told people that I'm a- a frycook?"

"No. I mean I didn't say it was you. I just asked around."

"Oh, okay, good, 'cause. That would be bad."

"Yeah, I kinda figured it was big secret. Look, can we go someplace to talk? Somewhere private, maybe?"

"Sure, my dorm is right there," She offered and they headed up the stairs and into her room. Riley waited for her to shut the door behind them before he said anything.

"I just wanted you to know that I'm okay with you being the slayer, and I'm not mad that you didn't tell me. I get it. Having a secret that you can't tell anyone."

"Yeah, it's not really the kind of thing you tell a guy on the first date."

"I can imagine. I was thinking, we're not really so different. I mean, so what, we hunt demons, but does that mean we can't, ya know, date?"

"Oh. I don't know Riley. I've done that before and it didn't end very well."

"You dated me before?"

"No, I mean. There was this guy, Angel. He was sort of a demon fighter, too. It didn't end well between us and there was all this danger all the time."

"I know you like me. And it's not like we don't have anything in common."

"But that's not enough."

"So it'll be a bit difficult. I can live with that-"

"Well I can't. Look Riley, can we not do this-"

"Buffy. I really think we should try. If it's too dangerous, we can stop or slow down or whatever you think is best. I'm just asking for a chance."

Buffy sighed. "I'll think about it, okay?"

"Okay." They were silent for a moment. "So, when you say "demon fighter" you mean…"

"Don't ask."

"Okay."

* * *

Shortly after sunset, Spike was walking through town, headed down to the butcher's shop. The refrigerator was officially out of blood and Spike was feeling a bit starved. Another minute locked away with the watcher, who was doing an awful lot of watching Spike lately, and Spike might have flung himself out of the window and into the blazing sunlight. He wasn't far from the shop when he noticed that he was being followed.

His steps faltered before picking back up to normal pace. He was upwind and couldn't catch a scent, but the silence of the beings foot falls made it clear it was a vampire. The vampire was drawing steadily closer and a part of him wanted to make a break for it. He couldn't fight. Which would be better for is reputation, running from a fight or not fighting at all? He couldn't decide.

He could feel the vampire nearly on top of him. They must be on the roofs. It wouldn't have been possible to get so close otherwise. Assuming whoever was shadowing him already knew that he knew they were there, he looking hoping to catch a glimpse. He saw nothing. Whoever it was had to be very familiar with his scent. That left two options, Harmony or Angelus.

Spike turned into the nearest alley and lit a cigarette, waiting to meet his stalker. They dropped gracefully down onto the ground. _Not Harmony then._

"Spike," a familiar voice greeted him. "You've been awfully naughty lately." Angelus walked within arm's reach of him. "I expect that of you, but aiding a slayer?" He clicked his tongue. "That's just not like you."

"Helped her stop your poncey arse didn't I?" Spike said.

"That was for a good cause," Angelus sounded a mocking. "This is different. I'd say you'd gone and gotten yourself a soul, but I can't smell it on you. I can, however, smell pig's blood. Why is that, I wonder?"

"None of your business."

"Ooh, real mature of you Willy," Angelus looked apprehensive. "What's happened to you, boy?"

Spike sighed. "There are these new guys in town, called the Initiative. They do… experiments on demons. They caught me, put some kind of government chip in my head," He ground his teeth. "I can't bite anyone. I can't hurt anyone, or anything. If it's alive… I just can't."

Angelus growled. A bunch of government bastards went and crippled his childe. They would pay for that. "Have you tried removing it?"

"Not like I can just pull the bloody thing out, is it? I found this doctor, but he couldn't do it. He tried, but he said it was too difficult. That one wrong move and I'd end up a vegetable," He shook his head. "Can't even defend myself anymore."

"That's why you went to Buffy. She won't kill you because you can't kill anymore and you can hide out from all of your enemies." Spike nodded. "You can't kill demons either?"

Spike shook his head. "Not as far as I know."

"Have you tried?"

Spike thought a moment. "Actually, no. I just thought since- Ow!" Angelus punched him in the jaw. Spike glared and punched him right back. After he realized what he'd instinctively done, he grabbed his head waiting for the pain. There was none. "I can hit demons." He smiled. "Hell yes!"

Angelus smirked. "Good I'd hate to think you're _completely _helpless." Spike tackled him. They wrestled around on the ground for a bit, before they broke up laughing.

"Brilliant, I've missed the thrill of the fight," Spike said smiling.

Angelus chuckled. "Just do go out picking fights with every vampire you see. Only fight when you need to. I you'd like, we could meet up tomorrow, do this again?"

"Really?"

"Why not? It'll be like old times."

"You wanna hang out… at night… with me?"

"You have other plans?"

"Nope."

"Good. See you tomorrow then, childe," Angelus said as he climbed to his feet and dusted off his pants. He noted that he'd need to buy new ones. These still smelled like Angel and that filthy soul. Plus, Angelus always preferred finer materials. He left Spike behind and headed off to the bronze to pick his next victim. By next weekend, Angelus planned on hunting with his childe, one way or another.


	4. Evil Plots and Nasty Schemes

**Well this update took a LOT longer than I meant for it too. I've been so busy lately. Hopefully I'll be able to get another update in next week. No promises, but wish me luck.**

* * *

Buffy was walking through the cemetery. It was quiet and it looked like just another night. No signs suggesting that one of the most vicious vampires in history was hiding somewhere in town. She had checked the mansion at least a dozen times and found everything covered in dust each time. Nothing, living or non, had moved through that mansion in a long while.

She had only bumped into two freshly turned vampires who she'd staked quickly and easily. She decided it was about time to meet up with Spike and see how his patrol was going. They were supposed to meet up by the main gates, but not for another hour. Spike wouldn't be there yet, but she though she might as well stop and rest her feet. She could just sit there and wait for him and if anything turned up she had a decent view of the main portion of the cemetery.

She sat and relaxed with her back against the concrete wall. This morning there had been another brutally beaten body found by the docks. The girl was last seen by two friends of hers at the Bronze. One of the girls, Christine, said she had seen her dancing with a tall dark man. They girls hadn't wanted to interrupt their friend's fun and now they blamed themselves, but it wasn't their faults. It was Buffy's. Buffy had marched all over town and she still couldn't find Angelus. She'd even pummeled Willy and he didn't seem to know where he was either. Angelus was somehow below radar and it was her job as the slayer to find him and keep as many people safe as possible. Buffy sighed. The girl was only 17.

* * *

Spike found Angelus leaning against a large ornate crypt. He was dressed in his favorite, red silk button-up and black leather pants. It reminded Spike of before, when Angelus was insane and far from his old sire. Spike had never let himself think of how much he missed Angelus, but knowing how much he needed him if ever wanted to be a _real_ vampire again, he'd allow anything to get on his grandsire's good side.

"Glad you could make," Angelus said. "Step inside." Angelus went into the crypt leaving Spike to follow. The crypt was empty except for a large stone coffin and a lot of dust.

"Gone back to living in the dumps, Peaches?"

"Gotta make it difficult for the Slayer to find me. Don't wanna end the game before it's even started."

Spike decided not to ask. Angelus's idea of "playing" was never very fun for anyone but him. Angelus opened a trap door in the apparently solid floor, even Spike hadn't seen it with all the dust. He followed Angelus down the ladder into another large room. This room, however, was decorated extravagantly. It was perfectly clean, not a single speck of dust. He had moved Drusilla's old bed from the mansion into the crypt and cleaned all of the bedding. There were two dark wood bookshelves and several antique goth tables. He had a large ornate wardrobe with intricate patterns carved into the wood. At the foot of the bed of a large chest that Spike assumed was where Angelus kept his "toys". He always had plenty of things to beat people with and he liked to keep them somewhere pretty as if that made it art or something beautiful.

"Nice," Spike said.

"It cost an arm and a leg. Not that it was my arm anyway." Spike laughed and Angelus smiled. They were back together like old times. The _good_ old times. "Now, we better make sure all of that sitting on the Watcher's comfy couch hasn't softened you up, boy," Angelus smirked.

"You wish." Spike pounced on him. They wrestled and fought, laughing and growling. In an hour or two they'd exhausted themselves. Spike had a few bruises an scraped, but he'd be healed by tomorrow night. Angelus had a long scratch down his left arm where Spike had tried to bite him before he was shoved away. They were laying on Angelus's new oriental rug catching their unnecessary breath when Spike realized how long he'd been gone. It was at least 30 minutes from when he was supposed to meet up with Buffy.

"Shit. I have to go. I'm late to meet Buffy," He stood up and dusted off his jeans. He headed for the ladder.

"Spike." The younger turned to look at him. "You can't tell any of them that I'm here. You have to keep up appearances. But don't you forget for one second who your real family is," Angelus said darkly.

Spike just nodded before climbing up the ladder and exiting the crypt. Angelus cleaned up the mess of broken glass that had occurred when Spike knocked him into a table holding a large white vase. His knew shirt was torn, but he had others. He was more concerned with whether or not his childer might be falling in love with the slayer. The more he watched Spike, the more reason he had to be concerned.

He smelt like her. He walked with her and patrolled with her. He'd even told her about being able to kill demons. Of course she had immediately made sure he still couldn't hurt her before deciding that he should patrol with her. Angelus knew that Spike could hold his own and then some, but that didn't mean he liked the idea of Spike patrolling and killing other demons to keep the world safe. Wasn't going to interfere with it, but he would have to reassure himself of Spike's safety every now and then with a nice sparring match like the one tonight. This time around, loosing his soul had made Angelus seriously miss what he had before. Darla, Drusilla, and Spike by his side. He would have that again. Of course Darla was gone now, but Spike and Dru were out there.

Getting his priorities in order, Angelus decided, Buffy, then Spike, then Drusilla. No, maybe Spike's chip first. Which ever came first really.

* * *

Spike found Buffy at the gate. She was sitting against the wall, lost in thought. Her long golden hair seemed to shimmer in the moonlight. It looked so soft... "Slayer," Spike said as he approached.

Buffy visibly jumped which made Spike smirk. "What took you so long?" She looked him over once. "You look like you were mobbed. What happened?"

"Nothing I couldn't handle. You ready to head home? I can walk you."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "I don't need you to walk me home Spike." She stood up and dusted off her jeans.

"I was only offering. I thought with Angelus on the loose you might feel better if you weren't alone." Spike was rather amazed when Buffy, rather than interrupting him to argue, nodded and for a second looked almost grateful. Angelus must have had her pretty shaken and they hadn't even seen each other yet. He would be proud to know that.

Neither of them spoke as they walked. Spike thought that Buffy looked a bit dazed, as though she were sleep walking. He was glad she let him walk with her. If she were attacked while in this state, he didn't think she'd see it coming. When they reached her house, Buffy went inside without so much as a glance in his direction. He shrugged and headed back they he came toward Giles's.

* * *

The next night, Spike went back to see Angelus. He wasn't sure why he bothered. They'd exactly been best pals, but he still felt like he wanted to. Maybe he just missed being a part of something like he had before when he had a family. Angelus seemed pleased to hear that Buffy had given him the night off from patrolling. She was going out with a friend she'd said. Spike assumed she meant Willow or someone she met at school.

"So, Spike. Wanna help me with this one?" Angelus asked him.

"What is it?"

"Another not so mysterious and brutal killing. I made it myself," He said looking quite proud.

Spike rolled his eyes. "If Buffy found out that I was somehow involved-"

"Don't worry, Spikey. The big bad slayer won't know a thing. She's not even going to find them right away."

"Them?"

"That's why I need a hand." Angelus lead the way down to his room. When Spike's feet hit the ground at the bottom of the ladder, he had to say he was a bit impressed. Angelus had found himself triplets. He always was drawn to that sort of thing. Anything exciting and unusual and Angelus immediately wanted to destroy it.

They were young, blonde girls, not much older than 15, dressed up in their Sunday best. They looked like they had been walking home from a day at church or a wedding. Their hair looked as though it had been done up beautiful (though it now was dirty, bloody, and horribly disheveled). Their dresses were torn and tattered. Angelus had propped them up on the bed so they appeared to sit arm and arm like three sisters just happy to be together.

"I thought I'd put them in the park. That would be pretty don't you think?"

"Oh yeah, real pretty," Spike said jokingly. "What have you got them all set up for, your own twisted entertainment?"

"For this." He showed Spike a drawing he'd made of them. "I was thinking of slipping it through Buffy's window. She usually sleeps with it open."

Spike sighed not at all happy about having to carry the bodies all the way to park and just so Angelus could continue to torment Buffy. "We'd better get moving then."

They reached the park, each of them carrying a girl in his arms with the third thrown over Angelus's shoulder. Angelus staged the girls sitting on the merry-go-round. In the shadows they looked as though waiting for a friend to come and give them a push. In the morning the sight was sure to be far less childlike and a lot more grisly. Angelus dusted his hands off looking accomplished.

"Thanks, lad. Couldn't o' done it without ya."

"Yeah, whatever," Spike said. "We should get out of here before the slayer shows up."

"About that. You shacking up in the watcher's den. I don't like it."

"That's one thing we agree on then, peaches."

"I mean it, Spike," Angelus shook his head looking distressed. "I'm not as reckless as I was before and I realized I may have a made a mistake with that one."

Spike cocked his head. If Angelus was admitting a mistake like this, it had worth listening to. "What would that be?"

"Giles has a dark past. I wonder if his past might show up in my future."

"Feeling deep now are we?" Spike couldn't help but smirk.

Angelus shook his head. "I won't underestimate him again." He looked Spike dead in the eye. His face was entirely serious. "You won't either. Understand me?"

"No sense barking orders _sire_. I got the memo."

"Good. Now you should run along. I've got a message to deliver."

* * *

Buffy woke gently, a small smile on her face. She couldn't remember the last time she'd slept that well. After her date with Riley last night, she couldn't stop smiling. Willow said she was glowing. She liked that description. So Riley wasn't the "normal Joe" she thought she wanted, but he was so much better. He didn't even mention demons once, not a single time the entire night. They went out, saw a movie, got milk shakes after, and then he walked her home. It was almost like it was before, back at Hemery. A nice normal date with a guy who's as close to normal as Buffy thought she could ever have. She sighed happily and looked over at the sleeping Willow next to her.

The wind blew and Buffy shivered. She'd left the window open again. She rolled her eyes at herself. Someday she'd learn to remember to shut it. She reluctantly climbed out of bed, careful not to move not much so Willow could sleep. Buffy went to the window and reached a hand out to close it when she stepped on something. She bent down a picked up the neatly folded paper.

Her heart stopped. It was undeniably familiar. Very slowly with shaking hands, she unfolded the paper. The image of the young girls turned her blood cold. She got a bit dizzy and moved unsteadily to the bed. Willow could feel Buffy's distress even in her sleep and she woke. She sat up and put a hand on Buffy's shoulder.

"Buffy what's wrong?" Willow asked. The slayer didn't say anything, she just handed her friend the paper. That was all she needed to know.

10 minutes later the girls were downstairs. Joyce made them both breakfast, but Buffy didn't touch hers. Willow gave Buffy one last sad look before heading off to school. She didn't bother to ask if Buffy was gonna make it. Joyce put an arm around her daughter and stroked her hair. A few minutes later she called into work. Then she called Giles and told him about the picture. He'd already seen the bodies on the morning news. The girls were found by a brother and sister of 6 and 4 that had gone to the park early hoping to play before they headed to school. The girl was too young to understand why her pretty new friends had fallen asleep in such a place.

After Giles made sure Joyce would look after Buffy who would undoubtedly spend the day blaming herself, he let her off the phone. He looked over at the couch, he couldn't see the other side, but he knew there slept the key to not only his revenge, but he could save his slayer from suffering anymore pain at the hands of Angelus.

* * *

Giles walked down the sidewalk of a particularly desolate street. This side neighborhood had been horribly damaged in the earthquake 3 years ago and was declared uninhabitable. A few demons had moved into the abandoned homes, but there were no other beings for miles.

He found a building that appeared to have hardly been touched or at least had been repaired by a demon looking to make himself a nice home. It was an old one car garage. The mechanical door had been nailed down and boarded up around the edges so no light could get in and the door could no longer open even if the small structure still has electricity.

He double checked his coat pockets for any weapons that might be necessary in securing the building. He had been sure to grab a few stakes, a bottle of holy water, and a machete. That ought to cover anything that lives above ground. The door was locked so he kicked it in. It seemed almost effortless in his current state of mind. Something (or somethings) hissed from inside the room. Vampires reacting to the sudden increase in sunlight. It den of no more than 4. It took next to nothing for Ripper to dust them. He shined his flash light around the room. It was dusty and dirty with dried blood here and there on the floor. It would do nicely.


End file.
